Michigan football is hoping to win its first national championship since the 1997 season and here are three bold predictions for the Wolverines.
There’s no doubt that one of the contenders for the 2023 college football national championship is the Michigan football team.
The Wolverines have won two straight Big Ten titles and are coming off of two consecutive College Football Playoff appearances.
J.J. McCarthy is back for another season as the starting quarterback, plus Blake Corum, a top-10 Heisman finisher in 2022, also returned instead of leaving for the NFL draft.
The Wolverines don’t recruit as many five-stars as Alabama, Georgia, and Ohio State. But McCarthy, Donovan Edwards, and Will Johnson are all five-stars and potential first-round picks.
Michigan football has also developed a number of players into potential NFL players. Jim Harbaugh even thinks this team will break the NFL draft record that Georgia just set.
We’ll see if that happens, but focusing on the 2023 season, here are three bold predictions for Michigan football.
J.J. McCarthy will be Michigan’s Heisman finalist
With Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards both sharing the workload a little more this season, I don’t see either putting up big enough numbers to get to New York, especially because J.J. McCarthy will be in the mix too.
The lack of passing might be what holds McCarthy back this season but if he’s allowed to throw more, this offense will put up big numbers.
McCarthy should be targeting Donovan Edwards a bunch in the passing game. Colston Loveland is going to be dymanic and the receivers are better than people realize.
McCarthy should account for 30-40 total touchdowns and more than 3,000 total yards. I don’t see him winning the award, but he could definitely make it as a finlaist.
Will Johnson wins Big Ten DPOY
Michigan football got a stellar freshman season from Will Johnson. He was outstanding in the Ohio State game and had two interceptions against Purdue in the Big Ten title game.
This season, it’s not unreasonable to expect Johnson to be as good a cornerback as there is in college football. He’s 6-foot-3, is an impressive athlete, and has incredible ball skills.
He’ll probably wind up being the best cornerback Michigan football has had since Charles Woodson. Johnson isn’t going to win a Heisman Trophy.
I don’t even know if it’s possible anymore for a defender to do it and Woodson actually made some special teams/offensive plays that greatly contributed to his campaign.
But Johnson can definitely win Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Award. Michigan football should have the best defense in the conference and Johnson will be the best defender.
Essentially, it’s going to be a no-fly zone, just like it was when he was covering Marvin Harrison Jr. in the Ohio State game.
Another Big Ten title
Michigan football fans are wondering if the Wolverines can win a national championship, but it’s hard for me to see anyone beating Georgia.
I guess I’ll believe it when I see it. Yes, the Bulldogs lost a ton of talent, but they have a ton of talent waiting in the wings. The defense will be great and the offensive line is the only one tha might be better than Michigan’s.
At the end of the day, I see the Wolverines winning a third straight Big Ten title, which of course, includes another win over Ohio State.
McCarthy, like Woodson, will end his career with a 3-0 mark against the Buckeyes. Michigan football will get past their first-round opponent, finally shutting down the criticism that it can’t win a bowl game.
However, the Wolverines will fall short of a national title, which is nothing to be ashamed of knowing how good UGA has been the past few seasons.
Georgia might be the greatest college football dynasty of all time and while I believe the Wolverines can give them a run for their money, UGA is a different animal.